Justice Neutralizes Donald Trump
Published in Le Temps
(Switzerland) on 10 February 2017
by Valérie de Graffenried (link to
original)
In vain, he denigrated justice. The president of the United States faced a serious setback on Thursday: his anti-immigration decree remains inapplicable. Nevertheless, his obstinacy is disturbing, according to our U.S. correspondent Valérie de Graffenried.
The legal battle may not be over, but Donald Trump suffered a major setback Thursday night. His anti-immigration decree, which caused panic and chaos, remains suspended and therefore inapplicable. With the decision from the U.S. Court of Appeals in San Francisco, the U.S. president will eventually realize that his omnipotence has limits. He is above neither the law nor the Constitution. It is sometimes necessary to remind him of this.
The decision is all the more important because it affects the most emblematic measure of his presidency. The executive order, which specifically prohibited nationals from seven majority-Muslim countries from stepping onto American soil, was not only profoundly discriminatory and arbitrary, but also dangerous. It unnecessarily fuels fear and hatred. Remember, no nationals from the countries concerned have ever committed an attack on American soil.
Contradictory Statements
Recently, the Trump administration has slalomed as protests grow ever louder. It has disseminated contradictory statements, and its erratic attempts to fight the temporary suspension of the ban have only brought its negative impacts to the forefront.
Worse, Trump went so far as to take on U.S. District Court Judge James Robart, who issued the temporary suspension, by intimating, in a threatening manner, that Judge Robart would be responsible in the event of an attack. These statements, which trample the principle of separation of powers, are unacceptable. Even the conservative Neil Gorsuch, nominated by Trump to be the ninth judge on the Supreme Court, found Trump’s attacks on judges to be “disheartening” and “demoralizing.”
In his obstinacy, the White House’s newest tenant has gone so far as to claim that the temporary closure of borders is the absolute prerogative of the president of the United States. “False,” the judges retorted on Thursday. That things have reached this point only confirms the fact that the Trump presidency brings disturbing auspices.
The legal battle may not be over, but Donald Trump suffered a major setback Thursday night. His anti-immigration decree, which caused panic and chaos, remains suspended and therefore inapplicable. With the decision from the U.S. Court of Appeals in San Francisco, the U.S. president will eventually realize that his omnipotence has limits. He is above neither the law nor the Constitution. It is sometimes necessary to remind him of this.
The decision is all the more important because it affects the most emblematic measure of his presidency. The executive order, which specifically prohibited nationals from seven majority-Muslim countries from stepping onto American soil, was not only profoundly discriminatory and arbitrary, but also dangerous. It unnecessarily fuels fear and hatred. Remember, no nationals from the countries concerned have ever committed an attack on American soil.
Contradictory Statements
Recently, the Trump administration has slalomed as protests grow ever louder. It has disseminated contradictory statements, and its erratic attempts to fight the temporary suspension of the ban have only brought its negative impacts to the forefront.
Worse, Trump went so far as to take on U.S. District Court Judge James Robart, who issued the temporary suspension, by intimating, in a threatening manner, that Judge Robart would be responsible in the event of an attack. These statements, which trample the principle of separation of powers, are unacceptable. Even the conservative Neil Gorsuch, nominated by Trump to be the ninth judge on the Supreme Court, found Trump’s attacks on judges to be “disheartening” and “demoralizing.”
In his obstinacy, the White House’s newest tenant has gone so far as to claim that the temporary closure of borders is the absolute prerogative of the president of the United States. “False,” the judges retorted on Thursday. That things have reached this point only confirms the fact that the Trump presidency brings disturbing auspices.